Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Expands to Its Second International Market

By Suzanne De Vita

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Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices is expanding to the London market, with an agency in Central London, Kay & Co, joining the network this November. The brand brought on its first foreign franchise, in Germany, this past spring.

The agency, focused on the luxury market, will operate as Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Kay & Co, and remain independently owned and operated. The brokerage was founded in 1982 by Samuel Bikhit, and serves Mayfair, Hyde Park, Marylebone, Regent’s Park, King’s Cross, Bayswater, Paddington and West End.

The agreement with the brand includes expanding to up to 10 offices in the next 10 years.

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“London has been among our highest priorities as a key center for international business and an attractive market for global capital looking to invest in property,” says Gino Blefari, CEO/president of the network. “We are thrilled to enter the market with Kay & Co, a brokerage known for exceptional leadership, knowledgeable, tenured agents and relentless client service. As important, the company’s core values and growth aspirations match those of our own, steeped in trust, integrity, stability and longevity.”

“We are proud to bring the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices brand to London,” says Samuel Bikhit, chairman. “We believe Londoners and our many American clients in the city will embrace the brand and understand its marketing appeal.

“Kay & Co steps forward to a whole new era with a wealth of experience serving the Central London market our team dearly loves,” he says. “We’ve seen boom times and we’ve endured challenging times. The experience has given us a unique insight and understanding of the areas and clients we serve, and that knowledge is hard to beat.”

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“We are delighted to enter into this agreement with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices,” says Martin Bikhit, managing director of Kay & Co, and Samuel’s son. “London is a global hub that attracts people from around the world, and as specialists in the Central London property market, we are confident that London will remain a desirable choice for many.”

From April 2017 to March 2018, buyers from the UK invested $7.3 billion in real estate in the U.S., according to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR). For investors, London was named the No. 1 market worldwide by the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate.

“We believe there will be a surge of homebuyer interest in areas across Central London, driven by the arrival of global tech giants Apple in Battersea Power Station, Twitter in Soho, Instagram and Snap—the parent company of Snapchat—in Fitzrovia and Google and Facebook in King’s Cross. These companies and others have made informed decisions to establish hubs in London. Their employees will need homes in the months and years ahead, and Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Kay & Co will be ready to help.

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“Our longstanding clients are going to benefit from this international alliance, which will open up opportunities with fellow Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices franchisees,” he says. “We are joining a network of top U.S. and German estate agencies, and, as such, we’re very excited for the future.”

The addition of the agency builds on Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices’ growth internationally. The brand recently discussed the firm’s “forever” goal in RISMedia’s Real Estate magazine, with SVP of Global Sales Michael Jalbert stating, “Forever in the franchise sales arena means being highly selective of the brokerages that join our network and focusing on our global growth.”